(From Blue''s Perspective)


    Tomorrow, we were going to Ataraxia for the banquet. Luc sent me a letter saying that the ne was ready. He asked if he should bring it here. I told him that I would go as it would be an excuse to get out of the pce for a while.


    Since he did not find any clue about who the dark mage was after being around me for quite a few days, Dem and I thought it would be better if he went back to the magic tower or it might raise suspicions.


    "Why does His Highness not let Your Highness go out?" Perita asked on our way to the magic tower.


    "Um... He is worried," I said.


    "Worried? But I am here," she said. "If His Highness did not trust in my ability, he would not have assigned me with this very important task- protecting Your Highness, the Queen."


    "Don''t think too much... about it, Perita. It''s a-alright," I said.


    "If Your Highness says so..."


    Dem did not want to let me go out today as well. But I made him agree and he said that he would meet me after a while on the pce ground since I wanted to meet the knights.


    "When Your Highness will go to meet the knights, I can brag a lot," she grinned. "Actually, they are envious of me because I am the one protecting Your Highness. Everyone wanted this position."


    I chuckled. Not a single moment with her was boring. I was d that she was my personal knight.


    "By the way, how old... are you, Perita?"


    "Twenty-two this year, Your Highness," she said.


    ''Four years older than me, then. She doesn''t seem so though...''


    "Perita, do you have a m-mate?" I asked.


    "Yes, I do," she replied.


    "Really? Who... is it?"


    "It''s Christophen."


    "That C-Christophen? White hair?"


    "Yes, he is the one."


    "But..."


    "I know what Your Highness is thinking," she chuckled. "We are mates, but we do not have any kind of romantic feeling towards each other. That''s why we nned not to let this mere bond take over our life decisions. We are going our own ways. I know that this bond makes it hard for us to like another person, but it is not a problem for us.


    Right now, my dream is to be a great knight and contribute to my kingdom. The same goes for Christophen."


    "That means you will... never marry?"


    "That is correct, Your Highness," she nodded. "It''s not a problem. I am d that my mate is someone who understands my situation and thinks the same way as me."


    ''So cool! Amazing!''


    "I see..."


    "I don''t know if I am wrong or right and I also know that I am in no position to say this, perhaps it''s because of the way I think, but I didn''t like it when His Highness did not let Your Highness take a walk in the garden."


    "It might be for a reason I don''t know," she added. "But His Highness could say it in a different manner. Rather, when His Highness said no, it felt more like he was trying to control Your Highness''s movements. I know I am wrong; of course, His Highness would not do something like that. But I could not just ept it. I am really sorry, Your Highness.


    I will take any punishment Your Highness gives me."


    "Raise your head, Perita," I said.


    "Yes..."


    "I like your view. Your thinking... is really praise-worthy. And I like your... independent nature," I said. "But in life, there is a line we s-should not cross.


    If we want to, we can take the line... as far as possible, but no matter what, we must... not cross it."


    I could not just tell her she was right and she should keep acting like that. I liked her attitude, but I needed to consider a few things before talking to someone or supporting someone. Before my right as a neutral person, I was the Queen of Querencia. If she was against the king in any way and if I supported a bright and determined person like her, it would mean I was raising a rebel.


    And as a Queen, I could not just let a person like her go against Dem. Even if she was on my side, if she started to hate Dem, then she would lose her interest in following me as well. I was not a charismatic person. The only ability I had was that I could think a situation through. As a Queen, I was at odds here. So, in every step, I needed to be as careful as possible.


    "The king respects me... as a person and never mistreats me. Every person... has at least a single fault, let it be in their personality or something else. We cannot just judge a p-person based on a single... thing.


    His Highness, the king, is a great leader... and he is doing a very good job as a king. So, isn''t better if the subject also keeps... supporting him?"


    "Yes, I understand, Your Highness. And my apologies for overstepping my boundaries," she said, bowing her head.


    "Perita is a great royal knight. I hope you know... what''s best for you and I also know that you will surely achieve your dream," I said. "Anyway, enough with the... heavy talk, let''s get going."


    I brought cookies for Luc again since he only stayed at the magic tower. He had a lot of work and did not go out much. And besides, it seemed that he liked cookies as well. That was why, this time, I made the servants get me all the best types of cookies.


    As we reached the magic tower, Luc opened the door earlier than I expected. Perhaps he was downstairs.


    "Why did your husband let youe here? I thought he would surely..." he asked as soon as we entered. "Oh, you havepany..."


    "Ah, this is my new... personal knight, P-Perita," I said.


    "I see," he muttered. "Oh, you brought me cookies? So cool..."


    Perita looked at me as if she was wondering if Luc was actually the magic tower. Even I had to admit that he was acting like a child, taking the boxes of cookies from Perita.


    "And the ne is now fixed, right?" I asked.


    "Yeah,e with me," he said.


    ''Ah, finally! Without the ne, I was like a naked soul to Demetrius. Finally, I can get my privacy back!''


    "What''s this ne for?" Perita asked.


    "For safety... purposes," I replied.


    "But I am with Your Highness to protect you," she said.


    "I know, but still, I can''t just rely... on someone forever. There might be times w-when I need to save myself," I said. "Don''t worry, I know you can save me well."


    "Really, Your Highness?"


    "Are you sure she is a knight?" Luc grumbled.


    "I can say the same about you," Perita snapped. "I have never met you before. If Her Highness was not with me, it''s impossible to know that you''re the master of the magic tower..."


    "Is that the tone you use to talk to the master of the magic tower? Did you forget your rank?"


    "Hey, hey... Quit it and let''s get doing what... we''re supposed to do," I said quickly. It was the benefit of being a queen. Any quarrel could be solved if I stepped in. Though I still did not fully get used to it, I was trying.


    "Yes, Your Highness, and I am truly sorry for misbehaving," Perita said.


    "I am sorry too," Luc said.


    "Alright, let''s go now," I said. "Oh, did you pierce... your ear? I didn''t see it before..."


    "Yeah, it''s new," he said, touching the helix of his right ear.


    Demetrius had his ears pierced as well and he wore earrings quite often. His ears were pierced from a lot of ces unlike me who had only the lobes pierced.


    "It happened partly because of you...," he muttered.


    "Because of me? I mean, you pierced... your ears because of me?" I asked, surprised. "I don''t understand..."


    "Actually, I tried to practice a different type of magic so I could see how much ck mana you have inside yourself. It would help me know what kind of mage you would be. What I mean, how powerful you would be. But it''s actually not possible. It''s theoretically possible, but not in reality. I tried nheless.


    And it was too much for me and when it happens, then it''s hard to control my real power. That''s why I needed to pierce. Piercing helps bncing. Mainly, any kind of scratch on the skin helps."


    "Ah, I see... But I didn''t tell you to do... so," I said.


    "Do you expect me to remain quiet when there is literally a human with ck mana in front of me? It''s the first time I heard of someone like this. I need to find out as much things as possible."